


Something new

by cuneifire



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: 20th Century, F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-25
Updated: 2018-06-25
Packaged: 2019-05-28 13:25:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15050066
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cuneifire/pseuds/cuneifire
Summary: 1991. Belarus is her own country now; but she’s still figuring out how to be her own person.





	Something new

1991

.

Belarus stares, simply, at the spot on the wall.

                “Belorussia?” Her brother questions.

Belarus does not acknowledge him.

                Nothing.

_We will be dissolving into different states. You will be your own country now._

“Why.” Is all she says, eyes shifting from the wall to glance to her brother, crumpling her hands in her lap, feeling as if her bones might bend.

                Russia stares ahead, and very simply states, with a shrug. “It is what happens. Reforms, economy, unrest, all those things.” Her brother is very stoic, even at these times. She admires that of him.

“But-“ She struggles over the words, trying to piece them together properly in his language. _Her_ language, too. “-Could I not stay with you?” Her voice sounds small, even to her, and she berates herself for it. Her brother is strong, even in times like these. She has to be strong if she wants to continue at his side, stay with him, be his reliable-

“-No.”

                Her gaze snaps up. “ _What-“_ She hisses, wondering if her brother recoils or if that is simply some deranged hallucinations cutting from her loss.

                “You cannot, Belorussia. Your politicians do not want it.”

She stands up, stepping towards him at rapid paces. She grips his collar in her hand, feeling the corners of her eyes wet as his expression goes stiff under her.

“But- wouldn’t we be great, brother, just you and me, we could best the world? Are you worried I will bother you? That I won’t be strong for you? That I may-“ She spits over this one, for it does not sit well with her, “-that I may hold you back? Do you not like me, brother?”

                His gaze is steely when it meets hers, and she feels fingers curling around her shoulders, _yes, please, just say yes, take me now._

He pushes her away, gently. His tone is not so gentle as he turns, sparing her one glance over his shoulder as he leaves the room.

“Perhaps it is time you learned how to be your own person, Belorussia.”

                She stares after him.

.

Her hands fiddle with her skirt as she walks down the hall for the first time in what could be forever; this is the first time she’s been to the United Nations meeting. Before, her brother would just go for them all.

_It was so much easier when he took care of everythi-_

“Why are you always like _this!!!”_ A high pitched voice screams from near her, and Belarus immediately straightens. “I don’t even want to get into this stupid meeting, you kicked me out of your club because of _Gēgē_ twenty years ago! All I have is this stupid message, I need to give to Japan because he forgot it and he needs it for his speech and I don’t want my friend to be embarrassed, okay!”

                There, in one of the alternate entrances to the UN building, stood an red faced, furious girl- flower in her hair, hair whipping behind her as she gestured furiously at the guard.

The guard starts to at her, but the girl remains stony faced furious, until eventually Belarus notices there’s tears pricking in the corners of her eyes.

_“Don’t cry,” Her brother had once told her. “It makes you weak.”_

_Belarus had learned how to cry silently._

But this-

“I can take the file for you.” She says, stepping forwards with a sudden bout of courage. She makes sure her voice raises above nothing as the girl meets her eyes. Her Chinese is sloppy from so little practice, but she could still remember some from when China had visited her brother’s house. When she’d still been part of it.

The girl looks at her, confused perhaps as why some girl in a lacy black dress is offering to take her file.  Belarus shares that sentiment, can’t give a proper answer other than _I didn’t want to see you cry._

_Taiwan,_ a voice hits her. That’s her name.

                The guard snatches the file from the other girl, who stares at him. “Hey! That’s min-“

The guard gives it to her. “Just go.” He says, and shoves Belarus back towards the hallway.

                Belarus stares down at the letter, unsure of why her hands are shaking or why there’s this odd catch in the pattern of her heartbeat.

.

She’s leaving the meeting, tired and exhausted and sick of having to see all the nations she hates again (and her brother, who had not spoken a word to or spared her so much as a glance).

She leaves the building, staring up to the sky as she organizes her files, trying to put her thoughts into order, what America had told her before the meeting, wide smile as he informed her that she’d been freed from the evils of communism and he was happy to see her again.

She had stared at him. _But I loved being with my brother, and his actions were always worth it._

_Always._

_Alwa-_

Her eyes caught on a figure making its way towards her.

“Oh, it’s you!” The girl from earlier- _Taiwan,_ says as she looks up from her phone, turning the screen away and putting it into her purse.

“You’re Belarus, right?” She exclaims, and Belarus is somehow transfixed by her excited gaze.

“Thanks for taking my note to Japan!” She says, smiling. “Sorry I got so angry, it really pisses me off when other nations try to keep me out- you just became your own country, right? Is it nice?

Belarus stares at her, processing the words. “W-what?” _No, it’s horrible. I want nothing more than to join my brother, to be with him, to go back to how things were. How could anyone want this?_

“Well, no one really considers me a country, because of _Gēgē,_ you know. So I just looked at you and thought you were really cool for finally standing up to your brother!” She smiled. “I hate it when they try to tell us how to think, don’t you?”

Belarus stares. _W-what? You’re- you’re jealous? Of me? No one’s jealous of me? No one talks to me! The only person who cares is my brother- and now he’s left me on my own- what is wrong with you? How could you-_ want _to be alone?_

She stares into the girl’s golden brown eyes, wondering why she can’t say anything, wondering why she can’t feel anger but rather something building in her chest to a feeling like courage.

She clears her throat and tears her gaze away, glancing to the floor.

“Yes.” She says, meeting this strange, bubbly, _pretty,_ girl’s eyes, wondering about her.

                The girl meets her eyes, and smile profusely, cheeks pink.

“Do you want to go shopping with me?” Taiwan smiles, gesturing to her bags and Belarus’ dress. “I was going to go- I can help you if you want! I know my way around really well.”

                Belarus stares, feeling something that resembles happiness rise in her chest. It’s so unlikely, so unexpected- she feels her heart catch at it.

She feels something akin to a smile flicker to life on her face, and watches Taiwan’s eyes light up.

She swallows.  “Yes.” She says, dry throat, more to herself than anything else “Yes” She says, louder, this time to the world.

_Perhaps it is time to be your own person, Belorussia._ Her brother had said, and the words had haunted her.

Taiwan places a hand on her arm, pulling her off to _бог-_ knows-where.

_Not anymore._

And maybe, just maybe, this is a new start.

**Author's Note:**

> Notes  
> Gēgē- Older brother (pinyin Chinese)  
> -Taiwan was kicked out of the UN in 1971, the only country to have even had that happen.  
> -The USSR collapsed in 1991, and Belarus declared itself a country on August 25th, 1991.  
> Бог- god (Belorussian)


End file.
